Reviews

Brennan Short (woodwind doubler in Savannah, GA)

​"​Kellie is a great friend, colleague, and my first flute teacher! I’ve witnessed her develop from her time in undergrad to fine artist that we know of today. While she was used to to teachings younger students I was probably the first experienced musician, in both clarinet and saxophone, she took the challenge of instructing in flute. Her thrill for gaining the knowledge she has received is equal to her thrill of what she has to share. She has planted seeds that are pivotal in my career so far."

Daniel Cruz (middle-high school student)

"Kellie is a great flutist and teacher. She plays beautifully, and is really talented. Being one of her past students, I have learned so much from her. I really love her teaching style, as she went at my own pace, and really helped me understand my music a lot better. Taking lessons from Kellie has been a wonderful experience. She has helped me become a better player, and helped me understand music better. She is a wonderful teacher, and I recommend her to anyone."

Megan Lilly (UT student)

"Kellie is a sweet and patient teacher with a knack for breaking down complexities into one thing at a time. She is an incredibly skilled flutist, and knows the best practice methods for every situation. Her gentle and skilled instruction helped me to grow as a flutist as well as a musician."

Audriana Perkinson (UT student)

"Kellie was truly an amazing teacher. She didn’t just teach; she was a friend. I find that to be an important quality in a teacher. If you can’t connect on a personal level, then you probably can’t connect on an educational level. I feel like Kellie and I connected in both ways.

Even on days that either of us didn’t feel up to a lesson, we would get through it. Whether she was pushing herself or helping me through my issues, she would always get us through the lesson and allow me to learn something new. From life lessons to new flute techniques, I feel like I pulled something from each lesson.

​Kellie really drove me into my immediate flute player stage. When I first met her I was just out of high school, and I only possessed a beginner level flute education. By focusing hard on my learning style and learning me as a person, Kellie was able to advance my playing at a speed both of us were happy with. I think Kellie worked really well with the level I was at. She would excel with a student anywhere from beginner to intermediate.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my time taking lessons with Kellie. She was so sweet and helpful, and I think anyone would be lucky to have her as a flute teacher."

Trinity Fisette (high school student)

"My name is Trinity Fisette, a student of Kellie Henry. I find that she is an amazing teacher, mentor, and friend. There are few people that can not only make you a better flutist, but also a better person and she is definitely one of those few. I met her ironically through my mom after an incident that resulted in a broken shoulder putting me behind in my flute playing when I was in seventh grade. My mother saw her available in the Valdosta State tutors website, and took me to meet her to get private lessons to catch me up. Now I was nervous, as there are many different types of instructors and it's hard to find those that see you as more than just a method of income. Yet what I was met with was someone I hadn't even considered.

Here was a woman who gave me a bright smile and immediately made me forget my nerves. Her teaching and flute ability amazed me as she has quite a knack for showing and discussing a concept without making a person feel ignorant or ashamed. Her bubbly and energetic personality shows through not only in her smile, but also in her flute playing. She strives to help you no matter if its music, tonality, or just the basics of playing the flute.

Kellie makes her teaching fun, and strives to always keep her students' goals in mind. Due to her teaching, I attribute many things because not only did she help me catch up with the rest of the seventh grade, she helped me soar far beyond. Even as I ascended to high school, and became a member of the marching band there I kept having lessons with her. Kellie stuck with me and helped me make District Honor Band for five years in a row, one of those years she even helped me achieve first chair in my district. Another surprise that I do attribute to Kellie is when in my third year I made Region Honor Band, placing me as the eighth chair flute player in the region! While Kellie of course wasn't able to be with me in those rooms, in front of those judges, or on those stages her teaching was always invaluable! Her kind words, helpful tips, (such as eating a banana to soothe those audition nerves) serious as well as funny moments were crucial to not only the love I hold for my flute and music, but also my love of her.

Kellie helped me in far more ways than just being a teacher, she became in no small part a very important person in my life, whose opinion and teacher perspective I value greatly. A fine example of this was a few years ago with her as my teacher, I went on a vacation in Florida far from where she could easily teach me. Yet while I was away my mom went flute shopping unbeknownst to me, and with Kellie's guidance was able to pick out not only my intermediate flute, but also the open holed Azumi I play to this day. While I'm not partial to the piccolo as much as I am to the flute, she also helped me in finding one that fit me. What gets me though, is how well she knew me at a personal level. Because as all musicians know, a personal instrument, whether it be flute or clarinet, is always an extension of that person, that person being me and the knowledge of which my teacher, whom I will always call friend Kellie, had.

Which brings me to the whole point of my long review. Kellie Henry is a amazing flute player, but her best attribute is how good of a teacher she is. Her sense of humor, her ability to take into account your personal goals and adapt to them, and also her way of becoming just what you need. She knows when to push you, when to cry with you, when to motivate you, and when to drive you to your limit. Kellie's ability to know you not just as a student or flutist, but as a person is so much better to me than any band director or conductor I have ever had. Kellie is a amazing woman and friend no matter your situation or flute ability. I would recommend her for anyone that wants to learn flute, wants to become a better flutist and musician, or even to suggest a conversation with her not only to play better but to be a better person. Because to me, while her lessons are invaluable in the way of the flute, it's her conversations I always remember, and of the support she's always given me to chase my dreams far beyond the mere ringing of my flute's notes.

So yes, I'd say that all in all the adventure you will begin with her as your teacher will bring far more than skills on the flute, but memories that even now I continue to make. I graduate this year as an honor graduate from high school, and I will say that I attribute that success partly to her as her words to me at a time when I had hit my lowest was the life line that I needed. So for all those reading, perhaps this woman will be more than just a teacher, but also a friend."